ODI now all about batsman’s blitzkrieg: Top 10 ODI team totals so far

They have been known to be a more Test-playing side and adjusted less with the 50-over format despite playing it for several decades. They lost as many as three World Cup final, falling short of the targets on all occasions – by large as well as small margins. But England now are a different ODI side altogether, especially after the humiliating exit they faced in the 2015 World Cup after getting rattled by Bangladesh. On Tuesday, June 19, England amassed 481 for the loss of 6 wickets against Australia – eclipsing their own previous and world highest of 444 for 3 against scored against Pakistan in the same Nottingham in 2016. This is not just the highest score posted by England but also one of the series of mammoth totals they have been posing in the 50-over format over the last few years. The English batting line-up is more about power now and not the robotic display of burly technicians as it was once. Australia, on the other hand, are going through a phase which is reminiscent of the pre-Allan Border era and will need a major rebuilding to attain the height it once had. It was after 12 years that a team scored 400-plus runs against Australia (the earlier one was that game known for Gibbs’s heroics way back in 2006) and the way they lost two consecutive one-day series against England, the signals are not good for the Kangaroos. Here we take a look at the top 10 highest scores in ODIs – a cricket variant which is looking increasingly leaning in favour of the batsmen. 1. England 481/6 in 50 overs vs Australia at Nottingham, June 2018 Alex Hales of England raises his bat. (Photo by Nathan Stirk/Getty Images) The highest-ever score posed in the 50-over variant and there were two centurions (A Hales’s 147 and J Bairstow’s 139) and as many half-centurions (J Roy 82 and E Morgan 67) who powered the home side to the mammoth total. For Australia, Andrew Tye also scored a ‘ton’ by conceding 100 runs in 9 overs while Jhye Richardson came close by conceding 85 runs in his 10. The Kangaroos never really looked threatening in the chase that they opted and were all out for 239 runs in 37 overs to lose the game by a massive margin of 242 runs and also with that, the series. Adil Rashid took for 4 for 47 for England. This is the heaviest hammering Australia have got in ODIs since their 206-run loss to New Zealand at home in 1986. 2. England 444 for 3 in 50 overs against Pakistan at Nottingham, August 2016 England batsmen Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler congratulate each other. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) This was England’s and the world’s previous highest total in the ODIs and it also came at the same ground and was a series-winning victory. Having elected to bat first after winning the toss, England went on the rampage and the same Alex Hales was the hero in that game too, blasting 171 in 122 balls to propel his side to 444/3 in 50 overs. Joe Root scored 85 while Jos Buttler remained unbeaten on 90. For the visitors, Wahab Riaz had a forgettable day as he conceded 110 runs in 10 overs. Pakistan were never in the chase and were 9 down for 199 at one stage. But a gutsy batting display from Mohammad Aamir who scored a fifty saw Pakistan adding 76 runs for the final wicket to take the total to a more respectable 275. The Asians lost the game by 169 runs. Chris Woakes took 4 for 41 for the hosts. 3. Sri Lanka 443 for 9 against the Netherlands at Amstelveen, the Netherlands, July 2006 Sanath Jayasuriya of Sri Lanka plays a shot. (Photo Source: Twitter) Sri Lankan captain Mahela Jayawardena won the toss against the minnows in the first of their two-match series played in the Netherlands and riding on a veteran Sanath Jayasuriya’s 157 off 104 balls and Tillakaratne Dilshan’s 117 not out off 78 balls, the Asians posted 443 for the loss of 9 wickets – a score which remained at the helm for a decade till England eclipsed it. In reply, the hosts, who had quite a few debutants in their ranks, had a number of batsmen making a start but couldn’t continue to capitalise on them. Thirty-eight-year-old Tim de Leede was the top-scorer for the Netherlands with 51. The hosts were bowled out for 248 and lost the game by 195 runs. Jayasuriya was adjudged the player of the match. 4. South Africa 439 for 2 wickets at Johannesburg, January 2015 AB de Villiers of South Africa celebrates. (Photo by Duif du Toit/Gallo Images/Getty Images) It was the second of a five-game series preceding the 2015 World Cup and AB de Villiers, the captain of South Africa, showed how sharp the edge of his bat was ahead of the mega show. After Jason Holder won the toss and invited the Proteas to bat first on a belter of a pitch, the hosts made full use of the opportunity. Four of the three batsmen who batted that day hit huge centuries and of them, de Villiers’s 149 came in just 44 balls at a strike rate of 338.63. The other two centurions – Hashim Amla (153 not out) and Rilee Rossouw (128) were eclipsed as SA registered 439 for 2 wickets. The Caribbeans fought a lost cause with a couple of 40s and 50s and ended up at 291/7 in their 50 overs to lose the game by 148 runs. The man of the match award could go to only one man and that was ABD. 5. South Africa 438/9 against Australia at Johannesburg, March 2006 Herschelle Gibbs and Makhaya Ntini of South Africa celebrate. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images) This inning was special for it came in a match which saw both teams scoring above 400 – a historical feat and the South African total came while chasing Australia’s 434, the only time it happened among all the top 10 scores. It was the series-decider game and Ricky Ponting won the toss and elected to bat. Ponting himself smashed 164 off 105 balls, giving glimpses of his murderous innings at the same ground in the final of the 2003 WC against India, and he was given company by three half centurions in Adam Gilchrist (55), Simon Katich (79) and Michael Hussey (81). The Proteas did not lose sight of the target ever and riding Herschelle Gibbs’s 175 off 111 balls, skipper Graeme Smith’s 90 and some gritty batting from the lower order, managed to overhaul Australia’s score with just one ball to spare. The third ‘centurion’ of the match was Mick Lewis, the Australian bowler who gave 113 runs in 10 overs. Both Gibbs and Ponting were picked as the men of the series. 6. South Africa 438 for 4 wickets in 50 overs against India at Mumbai, October 2015 AB de Villiers and Faf Du Plessis celebrate. (Photo Source: Dailymotion) It was again a de Villiers show. Having won the toss and elected to bat first in the five-match series decider against India, South Africa thundered their way to 438 for 4, thanks to the 87-ball-109 from India’s nemesis Quinton de Kock and 61-ball-119 from skipper de Villiers and it was beyond the reach of even a much-vaunted Indian batting line-up. Frontline bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar was the ‘centurion’ for India, giving 106 runs in 10 overs. The hosts put up a very ordinary show in reply with only Ajinkya Rahane (87) and Shikhar Dhawan (60) showing some fight. India were bowled out for 224 runs in 36 overs, thereby losing the game by a mammoth 214-run margin, worsening their 208-run loss against Australia in Sydney in 2004. Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada took seven wickets among them to floor the Indians. 7. Australia 434/4 in 50 overs against Australia at Johannesburg, March 2006 Ricky Ponting of Australia reaches his century. (Photo by Hamish Blair/Getty Images) Ricky Ponting had a field day at the Wanderers, scoring 164 off only 105 deliveries in the series-deciding game against the Proteas but yet he could not lead his side to victory, thanks to counter onslaught launched by Herschelle Gibbs (171 off 111 balls). 8. South Africa 418 for 5 wickets in 50 overs at Potchefstroom, South Africa, September 2006 Mark Boucher of South Africa. (Photo by Gallo Images/Getty Images) SA skipper Jacques Kallis won the toss and elected to bat first in the third ODI of the three-game series which the hosts had already won and the carnage took off. It was the day of wicket-keeper Mark Boucher who remained not out on 147 from 68 balls. There were three half centuries besides that dashing innings and the Zimbabweans had no clue whatsoever. Zimbabwe ended up at 247 for the loss of 4 wickets in their allotted 50 overs with Terry Duffin playing a slow inning of 88 off 134 balls. South Africa won the game by 171 runs and the series 3-0. Mark Boucher, who also took two catches, was the automatic choice for the man of the man award. 9. India 418 for 5 wickets in 50 overs against the West Indies at Indore, December 2011 Virender Sehwag. (Photo Source: Twitter) It was again a series-winning show, this time by India, and it was special for it featured a double century from the hosts’ stand-in skipper Virender Sehwag (219 off 149 balls) after he won the toss and elected to bat first. Darren Sammy’s Windies banked on Danesh Ramdin’s 96 off as many balls during the chase but could only muster 265 in 49.2 overs at the expense of all wickets. For India, Ravindra Jadeja and Rahul Sharma took three wickets apiece to give India a win by 153 runs and also an unassailable 3-1 lead in the five-match series. 10. Australia 417 for 6 wickets in 50 overs against Afghanistan at Perth, March 2015 David Warner and Steven Smith of Australia shake hands. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images) It was the minnows’ first World Cup and the hosts made mincemeat of their bowling, scoring 417 for 6 in 50 overs. Opener David Warner, who now stands banned, smacked the ball at will to post 178 runs in 133 balls while Steve Smith and Glenn Maxwell followed suit with 95 and 88, respectively. For Afghanistan, speedster Dawlat Zadran conceded 101 runs for 2 wickets. Mohammad Nabi’s Afghanistan were never in the game thereafter and were skittled out for just 142 in 37.3 overs, thanks to some quality display from the Australian first bowlers who took eight wickets among them. Nawroz Mangal’s 33 was the highest score for the Afghanistanis. Australia, who were the eventual champions, won the game by 275 runs and it stands to be the second biggest margin of victory in ODIs till date. The Australian score of 417 against Afghanistan is the only instance in the top 10 when the total was not posted in a bilateral series.

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